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Jones follows his instincts

Telford Vice | December 02, 2004 20:19 IST

England wicketkeeper Geraint Jones decided to follow his instincts rather than the textbook last season and is happy with the results so far.

"I've been happy with my progress, but there's a long way to go," Jones told a news conference on Thursday.

"Halfway through last season I decided to do things my way instead of in textbook fashion.

"My decision was made after the culmination of a few matches in which I wasn't happy with the way I was catching the ball, so I went back and thought about the times when I was happy with it.

"You could say I followed my instincts, although I suppose my style is a combination of several different styles."

Jones said he spoke to former England wicketkeeper Jack Russell, who advised him to be relaxed but mentally aggressive, wanting the ball and wanting to be part of the game all the time.

"I needed to tune up on that, because as the wicketkeeper I've got to run the fielding show out there."

Jones showed his batting prowess in the second one-day international against Zimbabwe on Wednesday when smashed 66 off 46 balls to help England recover from 121 for five to total 263 for six.

Jones shared a record sixth-wicket stand of 120 with Kevin Pietersen, who scored an unbeaten 77.

"We could have been bowled out cheaply, and that would have been embarrassing," Jones said.

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"But it set up a situation for me to go out and show I could score runs in a one-day situation. It was nice to bat for a longer time on a good pitch.

"In test matches you are always trying to bat for longer periods but in one-day cricket the situation changes all the time."

Jones said he had been preparing for the scenario that unfolded.

"It's something I've been working on, the situation where you need to push the scoring rate up," he said.

"I've been working on getting my front leg out of the way and getting into the right position to hit the ball hard."

England won the match by 161 runs to go 2-0 up in the four-match series, which will be completed in Bulawayo with games on Saturday and Sunday.


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